Benanti and Broderick speak out as their new movie, which is fronted by Jennifer Lawrence, is branded creepy for revolving around a boy seduced by an older woman.
- June 27, 2023
AceShowbiz - The makers and stars of "No Hard Feelings" have responded to criticism that its plot is creepy. It follows Jennifer Lawrence's 32-year-old character hired by a couple of helicopter parents to "date" their 19-year-old son, played by Andrew Barth Feldman - which has sparked backlash on social media and among critics due to the concept of hiring a woman and the pair's age difference.
"I guess what happens is when a kid goes off to school, it's so frightening that they'll be happy and they'll make friends and they'll take care of themselves that some parents go to any length to make that transition work," Matthew Broderick, 61, who plays Andrew's dad in the film, told The Hollywood Reporter.
"And it's a hard time. I've been through it. But you really have to let them make it on their own. But these parents decide to mess with nature." Laura Benanti, 43, who plays Matthew's wife in the movie, admitted the concept of hiring a woman to seduce someone's son is "insane."
But she added about how it is a satire on parenting styles, "It's a cautionary tale. If you are a helicopter parent who puts your child in such a bubble, they do not know how to exist outside of that bubble, you are going to make the exact opposite and insane choice, which is what they are doing here."
"I feel like it is a very satirical look at what can happen if you do not give your children a longer leash to figure things out for themselves. Otherwise, you're going to end up curating their life forever."
The film's premise is based on a real advertisement on Craig's List posted a decade ago. In one scene, Jennifer Lawrence's character asks when she is being hired to "date" a teen, "Do you mean date him or DATE him?" Matthew's character replies, "Date him hard," prompting Jennifer's to reply, "I'll date his brains out."
Writer-director Gene Stupnitsky, 45, said, "It didn't really matter what happened and if anyone answered (the Craig's List ad). It was just, who are these parents, these helicopter parents who are putting this ad out and who's their son, what's going on there? And who answers this?"
"If you feel that way (creeped out) when you come out of the movie, I would be surprised. We took great pains to be careful about the ick factor because it could go that way… we took a humanist approach and I think that's all you can ask for."
